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Tuesday, September 20, 2011

IRMO, SC (WIS) - The family of the cab driver shot and killed in Columbia spoke for the first time Sunday night.
47-year-old Daniel Admassu was gunned down Friday near theWaffle House on Two Notch Road. Investigators said Nicholas Rivers pulled the trigger before turning the gun on himself. "He's not here," chokes Admassu's brother-in-law, Yohannes Negash.
Overwhelmed with emotion, Negash is dealing with the reality that Admassu is gone forever. "People get born," he said. "People die. It's a natural process, but most of it - 99% of it - makes sense. Things like this is hard to comprehend."
He said it's hard to understand how Admassu's life was taken so violently inside his cab. Admassu died from multiple gunshot wounds Friday. It was two weeks shy of his 48th birthday.
Family members say Admassu worked at the cab company for five years. He was the bread winner for his wife and two sons. He had just moved his family from Ethiopia to Columbia last year. "His wife being new here, not working right now," said Negash. "His two sons in a totally different culture, different environment. I don't know how she will have any understanding of what to do tomorrow."
"He will be missed," said Negash.
Bostick Tompkins Funeral Home is handling the arrangements. A visitation will be held there Monday from 1-8 p.m.
Admassu's funeral will be Tuesday at Columbia FirstSeventh Day Adventist Church. It's on Riverchase Way in Lexington and starts at 3 p.m.http://www.wistv.com